Scotland Gig Highlights – September 2013

September – bit of a weird month. 'Sept' meaning 'seven' in Latin, the reason the month is ninth up to bat in the yearly running order is all down to those pesky Romans, who added a few months here and there, shuffled the order about, and moved September up from summer into autumn. So if you're wondering why the leaves are turning brown and it's raining all the time, at least you know who to blame.

But no matter! Shelter from the grim weather as we dive straight in with the returning No Mean City Festival, taking place at venues across Glasgow throughout the month, and offering a celebration of all things Americana. We recommend perennial alt rock mavericks Eels, who come to town in support of recent outing Wonderful, Glorious – which offered some surprisingly uplifting material from the usually glum US indie veterans. They play the ABC on 3 Sep, but you should also check out the rest of the lineup, which includes The Be Good Tanyas, Caitlin Rose, and epic beard-wearer Kris Kristofferson. Yee, and indeed haw.

On 10 Sep, you'd be nuts to miss the magnificent, speaker-destroying electronic hurricane that is Fuck Buttons, coming to shake the foundations of atmospheric warehouse space SWG3. Their recent album Slow Focus only added to their towering body of work, which soundtracked a huge chunk of last year's Olympics. Support comes from crepuscular doom-merchant The Haxan Cloak.

Up next, the collaboration between Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals and American alt rap star Boom Bip – their hyper-intelligent, narrative-heavy take on electronic pop is themed this time around Italian Communist figurehead Giangiacomo Feltrinelli – when we spoke to the band, they promised an immersive, theatrical stage extravaganza to accompany the bleeps and beats. With rave reviews pouring in for their live shows as Neon Neon, this one comes highly recommended. They play Òran Mór on 11 Sep.

Anyone who went along to the fantastic Kelburn Garden Party this year will be thrilled to hear about another mini-outing taking place this month on the castle's lush grounds – the Psychedelic Forest Carnival on 14 Sep promises a heady mix of electronic, hip-hop and world music to party to, way into the wee small hours. Highlights include Mad Decent beatsmith Schlachthofbronx, tropical electro beats from Swank 'n' Jams, and of course a healthy selection of psychedelic cuts from promoter/DJ Astroboy, NoFace, and a host of local talent. 

James Blake has taken a fair old critical drubbing of late – Overgrown was not electronic and beat-oriented enough for some listeners, and too experimental a take on R 'n' B and traditional songwriting for more mainstream fans. Undeniably, Blake's skeletal, ethereal productions and fragile voice are showcased at their best in his hypnotic live performances – see for yourself when he visits the ABC in Glasgow on 18 Sep.

In our article on the Human Is Not Alone project this month (see p.14), Laeto drummer Robbie Cooper talks candidly about his battle with a rare form of cancer, and his efforts to raise money for Marie Curie with his compilation and series of gigs, showcasing friends and influences from Cooper's career as a musician – including a track donated by US hardcore legends Fugazi. The Glasgow leg of the gig, which will also visit Edinburgh and Dundee this month, takes place at Stereo on 20 Sep with Fat Goth, United Fruit, Vasquez and Hey Enemy, which also serves as a handy who's-who of some of the best experimental heavy rock in Scotland. 

The Katie Harkin-fronted indie mob Sky Larkin return this month with a new album, Motto, flaunting auxillary Wild Beasts member Harkin's sharp-eyed lyrics, and now expanded into a four-piece. Expect a bit more heft to their intelligent brand of indie pop as they come to Glasgow's Nice 'n' Sleazy on 21 Sep.

Instrumental noisemongers 65daysofstatic also return with a new album this month – Wild Light sees the band on powerful form, augmenting the experimental power electronics with swathes of treated guitar and tight, complex drums. Managing to be both political, experimental, and slavishly adored by fans without having a definitive front-person, let alone lyricist, is some feat – come and see what all the fuss is about at The Liquid Room, Edinburgh, on 22 Sep.

Floppy-fringed indie hearthrob Tim Burgess performed well at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this year, regaling the audience with tales of his debauched days on the road with The Charlatans during the Britpop boom. He treats us to a solo set at the Pleasance Theatre in Edinburgh on 25 Sep – expect songs from last year's Oh No I Love You, and maybe even a few 'Charlies classics thrown in for good measure.

Still pining for the 90s? Good. The Manic Street Preachers are back with new studio album Rewind The Film, which sees the band welcoming in a few guest vocalists, and pushing their latter day widescreen indie-rock template into various weird shapes, accomodating influences from Motown and folk. They can still write an excoriating political diatribe, not to mention a blistering guitar riff, despite pandering to the mainstream ever since The Holy Bible (with the exception of 2009's blindsiding Journal for Plague Lovers). We double dare you to stand down the front at the Barrowlands on 29 Sep and shout out requests for The Intense Humming of Evil.

Scottish Album of the Year Award winner and matchless guitar virtuoso (but never in a Steve Vai, wanky way) RM Hubbert celebrates the launch of new album Breaks & Bone – which features honest-to-goodness lyrics from Hubby – with a series of gigs this month, including a stop at Edinburgh's Electric Circus (with Aidan Moffat and The Unwinding Hours' Craig B in tow) and St. Andrews in the Square in Glasgow on 29 Sep, playing a beautiful old church with incredible acoustics. Both promise to be very, very special indeed. You can read some words with the man himself on p33. 

Another completely unique gig happening this month at the Usher Hall on 1 Oct is Live_Transmission: Joy Division Reworked, which features electronic artist Scanner, The Heritage Orchestra, and visual artist Matt Watkins taking on and transforming the back catalogue of one of the UK's most beloved and influential bands to create a new and ground-breaking multi-media performance. An absolute essential for anyone interested in electronic music's history, and the roots of British post-punk.

DO NOT MISS

Music language Festival 2013
Various Venues (Glasgow), 6-8 Sep

Credit is due to Glasgow-based promoter Fielding Hope, aka Cry Parrot – he has single-handedly taken on the mantle of the foremost promoter of experimental, lo-fi and leftfield sounds in the Scottish scene. This year's multi-venue, multi-platform showcase for some of Scotland and the world's best and most ground-breaking music, collected under the banner of the Music Language Festival, offers some unmissable gigs from the likes of Anak Anak, solo project of Conquering Animal Sound's Anneke Kampman; Planet Mu signing and multi-media artist Konx-Om-Pax; psychedelic disco terrorists Golden Teacher; lo-fi post-folkies eagleowl; loopmaster Wounded Knee performing with beatbox supremo Big Tajj; a solo set from Hector Bizerk's Louie; psych-rock disciples The Cosmic Dead; and incredible cult chanteuse Ela Orleans. That's just the tip of the iceberg – check our listings for the full stellar 3-day lineup.